10 best teams that fell short of winning NBA title
By Phil Watson
4. 2015-16 San Antonio Spurs
Before the 2015-16 season, only nine NBA teams had ever won at least 67 games in a season and never had more than one team turned the trick in the same season.
In 2015-16, the San Antonio Spurs had the misfortune of becoming the 11th team with 67 wins … and the second that season.
Yes, lost in the gigantic shadow of the Golden State Warriors’ run to an all-time record 73 victories, the Spurs — despite an aging core of 39-year-old Tim Duncan, 38-year-old Manu Ginobili and 33-year-old Tony Parker — followed the lead of young Kawhi Leonard and newcomer LaMarcus Aldridge to an epic season.
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Duncan was limited to just 61 games due primarily to load management (which was called “rest” back in these simpler times of four years ago) in what would be his final NBA season, but bolstered by some other relics in 35-year-old David West and 33-year-old Boris Diaw, the Spurs grabbed the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference.
Leonard won his second straight Defensive Player of the Year award and was named first-team All-NBA, while Aldridge made the All-NBA third team.
San Antonio swept the Memphis Grizzlies to open the playoffs to set up a battle with the third-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the conference semifinals. The Thunder were blown out in Game 1 but bounced back to tie the series with a 98-97 win at AT&T Center in Game 2. The Spurs reclaimed home-court advantage in Game 3 with a 100-96 win.
But that would be the last win of the season, as the Thunder sandwiched double-digit wins at home around a Game 5 win at San Antonio. It came down to star power — Oklahoma City got 53.7 points per game from Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook; Leonard and Aldridge combined for 50 points per game for the Spurs.